Dragon Ball/Z/GT Fan Fiction ❯ Happy Birthday Vegeta ❯ Girl Talk ( Chapter 21 )

Chapter 21

Happy Birthday Vegeta

Girl Talk

Last time on HBV: After blasting a semi-permanent hole in his mentor and trying to kill Vegeta's new advisor, Gohan has said he's on his way to find Videl.

*****

Vegeta watched the Brat with cautious respect in his opaque eyes. He would not underestimate the gentle natured half-breed again. He was not capable of regenerating flesh as the Namek was, and he didn't think the Supreme Kai would be so generously inclined a third time around.

"I am confused, Brat. Did you not just forceably send her away?" he gestured with a look at the rubble the door had been. Gohan snorted and moved toward his Prince with the lithe grace of a Saiyan completely comfortable in his body.

The hesitant child was gone, and in it's place was a lethal adult. His black and gold eyes glittered with resigned confidence, as though he had come to terms with the things he was capable of being and doing. The No Ouiji sneered at the Brat's bravado. Tail or no tail, he still had no clue about the true potential of a Saiyan, how could he when his blood was diluted with that of the harpy. He scowled blackly.

"I was angry, Ouiji-sama." the corners of his mouth pulled down, "my pride...still bleeds." He shrugged and caught site of the black attache case on the floor. He arched one eyebrow as his Prince was wont to do.

"What do you plan to wish for, Ve-ge-ta? Immortality?" he taunted with a merciless smirk. Vegeta stepped smoothly in front of the case, crossed his arms over his chest, and dared the whelp to move.

"That is none of your concern." He held the Brat's gaze implacably, and wished for the thousandth time that he had his tail, so he could scoop up the case without losing eye contact with Kakarott's brat.

Gohan realized with an uncomfortable start, that the most likely reason for the dragonballs to be where they were, had nothing to do with Vegeta's birthday, and everything to do with him, and his newly acquired mate. A growl rumbled from his chest and his harsh words tangled in it's low vibration making him sound more animal, than man. "I will kill you Ouiji-sama, if you even think it." Spiky hair and wild eyes flickered gold and teal with the unstable fluctuations of his ki.

Vegeta's grin was pure arrogance, flashing white canines at Gohan in superiority. "I believe you would try, Brat."

"I WILL NOT TOLERATE ANY FURTHER INTERFERENCE WITH MY MATE!" Gohan's power surged beyond SuperSaiyan2, snapping the tether of his control like an old thread. He launched himself at the Saiyan Prince in full ascendency accompanied by a primal scream of rage.

*****

Sirabi watched as the two Saiyans spoke, sometimes calmly, sometimes not. The difference, was told in the flashes of golden hair and aggressive body language. She swallowed and whimpered painfully. She was out of her league, and smart enough to know it. She shook her head in frustration and caught sight of Piccolo laying against the wall trying to achieve a meditative healing state. This, she was relatively certain she could handle. If he'd let her anywhere near him after the business with Gohan. She glanced once again at the No Ouiji, and made her way swiftly around the perimeter of the room.

Breath hissed from between her lips as she came upon the Namek, whose entire right side, from hip to the junction of arm and torso, was simply gone. She knelt by him clinically examining the extent of the damage, calculating his regenerative factor and paling when she realized how critical his state was. There were deep grooves etched beside his thinned lips, clear indicators that the regeneration was not going well. She reached out, with her empathy, and found him in silent, screaming agony, unable to attain the state he needed to repair himself.

"Kami? Piccolo?" her voice floated into his thoughts, light, melodic, and soothing. "Piccolo, let me help. In this at least, I have experience."

The faintest of smiles curved his mouth. "Experience means very little, with- " he worked to force words past his lips, "...unpredictable Saiyans." Her lips curled in appreciation. "Just rest, Friend, and let me work." She kissed the lines of tension from his forehead and started, by sorting through the jumble in his mind, seperating him from a haze of seemingly omnipresent pain. She gently herded their dual consciousness, into that deep resting state that was essential for any healing, and sealed them there.

Sirabi knew, his injuries were too extensive for her to heal alone. Creation of something from nothing was a tremendous task, and there was a lot of nothing there. A frown creased her brow. She would just have to jump start his regenerative abilities. She centered her energy, connected to that divine fount within herself, and found it already flowing because of his dire need. The words of a continual prayer wisped from her lips, as she began to build a base of power, just a little less than required by say, a Kamehameha.

When her whole body glowed an evanescent blue, she scribed a sigil of release in the ether before her, and the power leapt to the wounded Namek. It spread along his form searching for places of greatest need and clinging there. At the solar plexus area the otherworldly light fountained, and then dove straight down into the center of the Namek, filling, spilling, flooding, until a potent combination of Namekian regenerative abilities and Sirabi's healing energy poured outward like a tidal wave.

Their combined aural essense hung in the absence that was his torso, an ethereal, indigo foxfire that formed the basis of things missing. From the pulsating plasma came cells, bone, sinew, tissue and blood. Skin grew and covered the newly formed musculature glowing wetly and steaming lightly.

"That, is much better." Sirabi listened to Kami's breathing for a moment, making certain it was regular, before she released them with a touch, from their mental quarrantine.

Her hand splayed on his chest, the strong thump of his heartbeat warming center of her palm, drew a relieved smile from her. "I think you can handle any fine tuning that is needed." she whispered as Piccolo opened his eyes. Surprise lit his face when both lungs filled with air instead of fire. Dark eyes scanned the shape of her face and the curve of her mouth, so very close to his own, and he tried to push away the desire that was still unfamiliar to him. Anger sparked in his eyes and ire twisted his mouth. "You missed something." his words scratched roughly from a dry throat.

"What?!" temper flashed molten gold in Sirabi's disbelieving eyes.

Piccolo ran an unsteady hand along his chest, Kami skimming energy from the excess that shimmered on his skin like phosphorous. They turned on Sirabi, blue lightning dancing on taloned fingertips, and tenderly, they traced the bruising and broken skin that marred the column of her throat where Son Gohan had brutalized her. They watched intently, as the power spread, erasing the visible damage, healing that which could not be seen.

She shuddered as the energy rippled through her in a gentle but unexpected wave of pleasure, drawing a surprised gasp from her. He closed his eyes in satisfaction, suspicion confirmed. Roses tinted her fair cheeks, and tears filled her eyes. She was greatful for the kindness from Piccolo, but embarassed at being caught off guard...she immediately repaired that mistake with a familiar, solitary gesture that secured different shielding. She ducked her head, wishing fervently that her hair was not bound in braids so she could hide behind it's silken curtain.

"That, is much better." he said gruffly as the injuries faded. The same hand that healed her, tilted her chin upwards, and one of them, or maybe both of them, kissed away the tears streaking pale ribbons down her face, drowning in the saline taste of her.

"Sirabi?" he found himself perilously close to that sublime mouth.

"Piccolo?" a hint of humor in her tone.

"Thank you." Oooops. Slipped. Someone slipped, and now he's kissing her, damn it. Sirabi fully intended to reply, but her mouth, was...otherwise occupied. She trembled as his hands squeezed her arms, and then slid heated over the silk of her gown, to her back, drawing her in, crushing her against his new flesh. She was having trouble...breathing...her chest heaved with the effort, but she would rather die than break this kiss. Who needed air when the one you loved tasted of heaven?

"Sirabi?" he drew away from her slowly.

"Hmmm?" She looked at him amber eyes dilated in pleasure.

"Kami...I, wondered,...that is..." he stumbled, to her amusement, over his words, "How are you able to manipulate energy, if you are...sensitive...to it?"

She blinked clearly expecting something else, and then smiled, because even this curiosity was a victory of sorts. "Long, years of trial and error, seeking an effective means of blocking it."

"And did you, find one?"

"Not exactly." she blushed again, and hesitated, probing him with eagle eyes, for the motivation behind this line of questioning. Interesting. She couldn't pinpoint a source, but she could find no malice either. His fingers were stroking small circles on her back, and she chose, to trust him with her weakness.

"No single technique is enough, to provide me the protection I usually need. It is a patchwork of my own creation, and it's effectiveness is dependent on how much energy is flying around. And how prepared I am." she shrugged.

"What about the amount that Gohan, was throwing around, when he...attacked me?"

"I would be lying if I said it had ever been tested to such extremes." she laughed and shook her head in belated amazment...the young man's power was phenomenal, and it was nothing short of a...miracle...that she was still alive after their last encounter.

"Were. You. Hurt." cool steel betrayed his unexpected anger at his student, and his concern for Sirabi.

"N...Not, exactly, No." Her answer served to frustrate him. "What do you mean? 'not exactly'? What the hell kind of answer is that? Were you or were you not, hurt, by your exposure to Gohan's display?"

"No."

"No?" Disbelief glinted in his eyes and a wry smile made a home on her already delectable mouth. She sighed, knowing that she would have to explain sometime, now would be as well as later.

"It does not effect me, in the way you think." she said softly, color rising in her face once more.

"I have Kami's memories, of your training-" she interrupted him with a hand in his face.

"Kami! Why have you let Piccolo think this?" she stared right through his eyes, jabbing his chest with a finger pointed in anger. You could have set him straight on this matter, ne? Troublemaker!" she seethed at him.

Piccolo swore as Kami's low, laughter echoed in his head. True enough, child. It had been his favorite game with Sirabi, trying to catch her off guard. Throwing a little energy her way and watching for her reaction. Perhaps because it had been so personal, he was hesitant to reveal it to Piccolo. Struggling to overcome his rather belated possessive tendencies, he set Piccolo straight, with a decidedly masculine snicker.

Energy does not cause Sirabi pain, in the manner you assume. It, in fact, causes very strong, pleasurable feelings in her.

"Why, would that be cause for concern?" Piccolo responded aloud, confusion wrinkling his brow, just masking the relief he felt.

"Kami, is making light of things." Sirabi replied crisply. "This...sensitivity, was a serious flaw...Uninitiated, I was unable to shield myself. The slightest energy exchange in my presence had the capacity to render me, blissfully unaware. 'Completely useless, in times of crisis' I think was the ruling." Her voice bore the weight of dissappointment, and her eyes threw hot sparks at the remembered insult. "My initiate years were spent devising and testing personal shields for varying situations." she laughed again, somewhat dryly. "Working around Saiyans is undoubtedly the ultimate test."

They were wrong, Sirabi. You know it, and so do they. You've made them eat their ruling a dozen times over. You serve the Supreme Kai. No greater honor could have been bestowed upon one whose abilities they so drastically underestimated.

Kami's words were a balm for her pride, and with a breathy sigh, she let the tension drain from her body. She found herself wrapped in a close embrace, and closing her eyes, she prayed, that the haven would become a permanent one for her.

*****

Vegeta drew the necessary energy, and fired before the Brat got anywhere near him.

"Gallic Gun." The words were flat and insidious as a tombstone. Black eyes burned feverishly in a face carved with harsh lines. His lips clenched grimly as his attack ripped through the body of his rival's oldest offspring. 'Sorry, Kakkarott.'

The sound of a dead demi-Saiyan hitting the floor drowned out the sound of the walls coming down around him.

West Wing Infirmary

"Well, that's that." Bulma read through the last of the bioscan printout. "Nothing's broken or internally damaged. You're in shock, you've got some bruising, a couple of good cuts, and one bite mark. Nothing we didn't already know from cleaning you up, hmmm?" She glanced at Videl hoping for a reaction from her as yet unresponsive patient. Videl flicked a dull blue look her way. Bulma smiled. "There you are...it'll get better. How bout a cup of tea?" There was no visible response this time, but Bulma chose to interpret silence as acceptance. She disposed of the bandage packages and anitseptic swabs, and moved to the sink where she washed up and removed her lab coat. Standing thoughtfully in front of the replicator, she tapped a slim, manicured fingertip against her lips. "Replicator active. Make two cups of earl grey, one with brandy, one with honey." While the machine was humming, Bulma looked back at Videl, who sat slumped and unmoving on the infirmary bed. Sympathy swirled in her. They had something of a problem. Before Vegeta formed their bond, he was particularly careful to make sure she understood the permanance, and the significance of the gesture. He also explained the basics of it's functioning, so she was scared, for Son Gohan, who had the very poor misfortune of being confronted by his not-quite girlfriend, at the absolute worst time ever. One or the other maybe, but Dende why, did he have to deal with his first rut and bonding in the same day? Taking the tea to the bedside table, she hoped it didn't come to bloodshed between Vegeta and Gohan. She snorted. That was a pointless wish. Her frown caused lines of worry to appear beside her mouth.

She busied herself inclining the head of the bed and making Videl as comfortable as possible. She pushed the red rimmed cup towards the girl, keeping the honey sweetened tea for herself. "Drink it." her suggestion brooked no argument. Videl tested the beverage, and finding that it wasn't scalding hot, she sipped, and gasped. It felt good though, strong, warm and comforting. Something she felt she needed a lot of right now...comforting. She gulped another mouthful down and sighed at the heat coursing through her. She watched warily as the CEO of Capsule Corporation perched herself comfortably on the side of her bed and swirled her tea. Bulma drew a deep, relaxing breath, searching the girl's cautious face, wondering where in the hell to start, and whether or not to start at all.

"Okay. Here's the deal. I have a couple of questions for you...and after you answer them, If you still feel like talking, I'll answer whatever questions I can. I'm sure you have a few." she smiled slyly at the deliberate understatement, and the glint of emotion it provoked in Videl's eyes.

"Whatever." Videl's voice was blunt.

"Good. This shouldn't be too bad." Bulma sipped her tea. "First of all, how did you find Son Gohan and more importantly, how did you get into the suite?" Videl choked on sudden cold fear and realized she might actually be charged with breaking and entering Capsule Corp...she cringed at the thought of the guys down at the station booking her...they had memories like elephants. She stifled a groan and forced herself to meet the steady, shining gaze of Bulma Briefs.

"Sirabi. Vegeta's advisor right? She got lost wandering around, and we crossed paths on my way out..."

"Really?" aqua brows arched in surprise. 'I wonder why Sirabi didn't stop Videl...she did say they were meant for each other. Maybe that's why...what a mess right now though...' "Go on."

"She told me you had Gohan locked up" dark-blue eyes flashed accusingly at Bulma, "...but she didn't know why. And then she told me where he was."

"Hmmm. She didn't say anything else about Gohan?" Videl gritted her teeth in annoyance at having to answer the same questions over and over.

"She said, that he was 'very much himself' tonight," she paused, "And that I probably wasn't very familiar with this side of him." she admitted quietly.

"Ahhhh." Bulma nodded in understanding. "So. How did you get past security?" her eyes took on a sharp, unfriendly, sheen.

"Air conditioning vent." Videl felt honesty and brevity were her best options.

"Oh! No way. How was that overlooked? Damn..." her brow furrowed in serious thought. "...has to be some way to configure the current security system...maybe motion or heat sensors..." she mumbled, having forgotten for a time the crisis at hand. She scribbled notes on a pad at the bedside, "I'll have this corrected when they rebuild the suite...again." she sighed.

Having had several minutes of quiet for the brandy to warm her insides, Videl found she felt fairly confident about questioning Mrs. Briefs. In fact, she couldn't wait to get started. She crossed her arms over her chest and mustered as much arrogance as she could come up with under the circumstances.

"So, Mrs. Briefs. Was Gohan locked up because you didn't want anyone to see that you've been experimenting on him? Exactly what kind of drugs are you giving him!? His eyes have changed colors, he has a..tail for God's sake! And he...is not acting like himself lately."

"What? Experiments?" Bulma tittered in the annoying fashion of her mother, which caused her to cover her mouth in shock. Even so, a snicker fought it's way free of her restraining fingers, and evolved into full-throated laughter. The very idea...well, okay, so she had experimented on them all at one point or another, but not with the intent or results that Videl was so upset about. A wide grin curved across her face and refused to budge despite Videl's obvious displeasure at being laughed at.

"I'm sorry. I can assure you, he has not been experimented on, recently..." she smirked again, "...and he was voluntarily confined to protect you." she said putting not too-fine a point on things.

"Protect me from what?" Videl didn't trust the direction of this conversation, at all.

"From Gohan, mostly." Mrs. Briefs seemed completely lucid, but her answers weren't computing. Videl bit back her aggravation, straining to remain calm.

"Why...would Gohan...agree to be confined...to protect me, from himself?"

Bulma sighed. "It's rather complicated."

Videl gestured to the hospital bed. "I'm not going anywhere."

"More tea?" Bulma offered.

"Just answers." Videl shook her head.

"Okay then. I'm glad to see you're feeling better..." Bulma took a sip of her own lukewarm tea before speaking again.

"You must have noticed before today, that Gohan is, different. I'm not talking about his goofy sense of humor or his questionable taste in clothing...I'm talking strength, speed, and stamina."

Videl found that she could come up with several questionable incidents involving Gohan's strength and speed...but he'd always laughed them off as flukes. She motioned for Bulma to continue.

"He has these traits, and dozens of others, because he is not human. At least not completely." she amended. Videl wanted to be shocked, damn it! But there was a solid certainty in her gut that agreed with the Briefs' woman. A frown pulled her brows together.

"How can he be, not 'completely' human?"

"The usual way..." Bulma nodded placid blue eyes as one hand waved flippantly, "One parent or the other is not human. In Gohan's case, his father was a Saiyan, from a planet called Vegeta."

The moment the words fell from the blue-haired woman's lips, that image flashed in Videl's mind, the one of Gohan's father and his strange golden transformation. 'Well, that's one explanation...the other is that I've lost my mind.' Videl swallowed the uneasy thought, and forced her mind to be it's usual steel-trap self.

"Vegeta, like your husband?" she grasped at the obvious. Bulma didn't correct her terminology, there was entirely too much left to explain to be bothered with semantics just yet.

"Exactly. The planet was named after the ruling family. Vegeta, is the Crowned Prince of the Royal Family of Vegetasei." There was a touch of pride in Bulma's voice. Videl only remembered recent sympathy in those keen, black eyes, and the strange upswept hair, and found she didn't have any trouble at all picturing the man in royal garb. In fact, the thought seemed so fitting, that she smiled impulsively. "Go on."

"How they ended up on Earth is an incredibly long tale, more suited to an action anime than verbal recitation." Bulma smiled a bit wistfully. "They were the last of their kind, and eventually, Goku married ChiChi, and Vegeta, chose me." Slender fingers pushed aside the halter strap of her dress, exposing a roughly crescent-shaped scar, "I bear his mark, just as you wear Gohan's."

"He bit you?" Videl's eyes were wide, and she reached a hand out to touch the mark on Bulma's neck. "and you bit him back?"

Bulma agreed. "It's not just a bite though, and I did have the benefit of an explanation beforehand."

"This is the...bond everyone keeps talking about?" Videl questioned darkly.

"The beginning of it, yes." Bulma examined Videl's still pale features and debated ending the discussion before it went any further.

Videl's eyes narrowed at her hesitation. "Oh no you don't. These are the answers I came for...if you think I'm letting you walk away now...you've got another thing coming."

Surprise flittered across Bulma's pretty face, at the girl's vehemence. Although truthfully, she understood better than anyone else Videl's need for knowledge. In order to keep from feeling powerless against a thing, you have to understand it completely. She smiled, with a little more warmth, and Videl relaxed back against her pillow, only to be shocked upright seconds later.

"At it's basest form, the bite is a blood-letting ritual. Ideally it's an exchange of bodily fluids far more intimate than saliva or semen." Scientist Briefs took over the beautiful woman with a flush of pleasure. "This exchange, the bite, what they call the 'mark', has to be mutual for the actual Bond to be established." Videl bit her lip impatiently. "What...precisely, is the bond?" Bulma acknowledged the question with a patient curve of her lips.

"The intermingling of blood, and the unique Saiyan physiology, allows for a bonding of souls. It creates a mental and emotional connection unlike anything you can imagine. Telepathy is common, and a very strong empathy with one another...you know when the other is cold, or sad, or sick or angry." Bulma hid a callous grin from the poor unsuspecting girl with a sip of tea.

"The Bond, is the Saiyan equivalent of our marriage ceremony. Acutally, it's far more, in that it can not be undone. Saiyans mate for life, like wolves."

"What?!" Videl's hand flew to the tender spot on her own throat. "Married?! He never even asked me out!" outrage colored her words with streaks of red-orange heat. 'Permanant? This is permanent? Oh...gods.' Vegeta's furious words rang in her ears...'he has bound his soul to yours, and for whatever reason, you've rejected him...' she trembled at the impact, and attempted to distract herself.

"Wolves huh? Is that what's with Gohan's eyes and tail? Are Saiyan's part wolf?"

"Wolf, no." Bulma shook her head. "His eyes and tail though, are characteristics of his Saiyan lineage. The tail, is the embodiment of their strength and masculinity...and as we saw earlier, they are extremely sensitive. I haven't had near enough opportunity to study them to find out why though..." the scientist mused.

"Hhhm." Videl let her eyes close, and she thought about that incredible softness beneath her fingertips, the way Gohan seemed to shiver at her touch. A shiver slid up and down her body in response...and he wasn't even in the same room. She shivered again.

Bulma chuckled. 'She seems to be dealing pretty well so far, though given those chills, she's probably still in shock,' not to be held accountable just yet.

"Sure you don't want another cup of tea?" Bulma offered as she walked to the replicator.

"Yeah, okay. Hold the liquor this time." Videl requested with a hint of humor.

"Nope. You'll need it." Bulma quipped. As she programmed the replicator again there was a muffled explosion, and the building shuddered, the walls of the room flexing outward and then back.

"Earthquake?" Videl was alarmed at the sickness coiling in her stomach.

"Aah-h-h-h...no. Most likely Vegeta and Gohan." Bulma said nonplussed.

'Geta?' she tested their link.

'Not now, Woman.' Bulma smiled thinly. There was nothing unusual in his abruptness to indicate there was a problem. If there was, the bodies would be here soon enough.

"There's more?" Videl seemed to lose whatever color had been restored by the toddy.

"Girlfriend, we haven't even scratched the proverbial surface." Bulma replied as she handed Gohan's mate a fresh cup of tea and eyed her suspiciously.

"Are you feeling okay? No dizziness, double-vision..."

Videl grimaced. "Just sore...and quite possibly mad, but nothing serious." Bulma snorted hot tea when she tried to laugh and sip at the same time. She dried her face and did her best to wipe away the amusement.

"Sorry honey, your bioscan is clear, there is no indication of mental instability. You have not lost your mind. Admittedly, it sometimes feels as though you've stepped into some alternate dimension, but you are not insane. Not even a little."

Blue gazes locked, one scared, one sympathetic. Bulma spoke softly and from experience. "It's simply fact, Videl. They exist, and you will not believe the things they are capable of, until you've seen them."

Her words triggered a rush of Gohan's memories that she had seen. Things she had thought impossible. Gohan's voice echoed through her mind...'just because you are ignorant of a thing, does not mean it doesn't exist, Videl.' She gasped, and Bulma turned sharp eyes on her. "You're sure you're okay? Want something for the pain?" "No, just, go on." Videl declined the offer with a tilt of her head.

"Only for a few more minutes. There really are one or two other things you need to know." Bulma said, resolving to keep to the vital areas. "The gold irises he has, are a temporary effect of his sexual maturity."

"Huh?"

"Sorry." Bulma laughed. "I find the behaviors so fascinating, I tend to talk about them in scientific terms. Basically, our Gohan is going through Saiyan puberty, and the gold irises are a temporary symptom. His body is biologically mature enough to procreate...this is a very intensive time...a peak of sorts hormonally. I think that's why he regenerated his tail now and not before..." her face was pink with excitement, and furrows of concentration lined her brow.

"He's being absolutely driven by his Saiyan physiology, he's moody, dangerously aggressive, and he has this all-encompassing need to...mate." she snickered. "Generally not the best time to choose a lifemate, but then Gohan has known for a while now who he wanted." she turned a suddenly serious visage on Videl. "I know, it's a lot to take in, Videl. But you're strong and you're smart, or Gohan would never have been interested. I won't tell you it's easy, although, Gohan is half-human, that's half your battle." she laughed at Videl's bemused glance.

"Try working past self-imposed species bias..." she explained, shaking her head tousling shiny blue hair. "We humans are a lowly lot to the Saiyans." she snorted, "It's just as well there are no more of them...powerful, arrogant, pig-headed, argumentative aliens." she finished with a huff.

Bulma moved up the bed, to sit right next to Videl, and solemnly, she sought the girl's wide-eyed gaze.

"I will tell you, that there is nothing else out there, that could even hope to compare." she spoke sotto voce, warmth filling her words with intensity. Bulma touched the bruised bite mark on Videl's throat, blue eyes crystalline with unshed tears. "He marked you because you are worthy of his Saiyan heritage, worthy of his pride. He will die, before letting harm come to you."

"That's not true!" Videl's eyes filled with tears and her heart ached, "He tried to blow me up!"

Bulma responded emphatically. "I know he scared you. But if he'd meant for you to die, you'd be dead. I've known Gohan his whole life, Videl, and even as a child, his control was tremendous. Not to mention the fact that because of his partial bond, if he were to kill you, it would kill him as well." Bulma looked thoughtful. "In fact, I don't think this bond was an accident at all. I think he knew exactly what he was doing when he bit you. Idiotic Saiyaman."

Videl sniffed back tears. "What do you mean? He's not an idiot." she said petulantly. Bulma gripped Videl's chin and held it in place.

"He's an idiot for risking his life on a relationship he had yet to establish. He knew when he bit you, that you might reject him flat. He might even have been counting on it. Something of a calculated risk..." she thought aloud. "Bond mates can not survive apart. He wanted to force your hand, the jerk. How typically Saiyan." Bulma snorted daintily.

"You're not making any sense!" Videl complained and jerked her face from Bulma's hand.

"Listen, Videl. Bond mates can not survive apart from one another. Even though you have not completed the bond, if you just leave, it will still kill you. Not as painfully as Son Gohan," she frowned thinly, "A general failure-to-thrive rather than anything specific. But Gohan, will feel it all, acutely. His own slow death and yours. His grief and yours. He bit you, knowing you'll eventually give in or it will kill you both!"

Videl fought back a wave of anguish as she recalled their earlier confrontation. Gohan's earnest voice reverberated in her head once more. 'It is already done. There is nothing left but for you to accept...And if I don't? she taunted him. He shivered at the thought of being alone when she already permeated his very being...I think, I would die...'

"He. Bit. You. Knowing that if you did reject him, you would not be the one to feel the pain of separation. He assumed the risk himself. He could do no less for his chosen." Vegeta's low voice rumbled over them. Two heads snapped up, and twin gasps of shock came from the Woman and the Girl. Vegeta No Ouiji stood in the doorway, a bloody and unconscious Gohan slung over his shoulder, both of them covered in thin white dust and soot. He made his way over to an empty bed and dropped Kakarott's whelp onto the white sheets.

"Geta?" Bulma's voice wavered.

"He took a Gallic Gun at point blank range. He is mostly dead. Ki restraints first, Woman, then senzu." The No Ouiji sounded exhausted.

"Gohan? Gohan? Gohan!" Videl keened, curling into a ball, her hands clutching her middle, when she finally connected the icy illness in her stomach, to her loss. The Prince turned vacant, silvery eyes on her.

"Get a grip, Girl." he smirked, "he's not gone yet."

Jada sighs. I had a terrible time finding a cut off place for this. I hope it's not too abrupt. Remeber to Review!!! Chapter 22 is already well on it's way.

Lovies! Jada